


Christmas 2k15 - Day 4

by DemiDoots



Series: Advent Calendar 2k15 [4]
Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Neighbors, Christmas, Cooking, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-04
Updated: 2015-12-04
Packaged: 2018-05-04 20:58:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,392
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5348312
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DemiDoots/pseuds/DemiDoots
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sousuke knocked on his neighbor’s door, more than a little concerned about the smell seeping out into the hallway. When there was no answer or any other response, he knocked again, a little more urgently. He was just considering calling the fire department when the door finally flung open to reveal his neighbor on the other side, apron stained with no telling what and more than a couple of burns on his hands.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Christmas 2k15 - Day 4

Sousuke knocked on his neighbor’s door, more than a little concerned about the smell seeping out into the hallway. When there was no answer or any other response, he knocked again, a little more urgently. He was just considering calling the fire department when the door finally flung open to reveal his neighbor on the other side, apron stained with no telling what and more than a couple of burns on his hands.

“Yeah?” He asked, obviously irritated.

“I could smell something burning and wanted to make sure nothing was on fire,” Sousuke explained as he peered into his neighbor’s apartment and caught sight of the kitchen. He had to cover his mouth in an attempt to hide his laugh. “Cooking?”

“Ha ha, yes, it’s very funny,” the redhead groused as he glared back over his shoulder at the disaster his kitchen had turned into. “I drew the short straw and have to host Christmas for my friends this year. I should’ve just ordered out, but no, I figured ‘how hard could it possibly be?’ and now I’m stuck with this mess and it’s too late to do anything else and...” He groaned as he ran his hands over his face and smeared something red and slightly blackened over one cheek.

They really didn’t know each other beyond the occasional hello in the hallway, but Sousuke felt bad for the guy. When a few thin trails of smoke began to leak from the oven, he stepped into the apartment without thinking much more about it. “Watch out,” he said as he brushed passed his neighbor, only half listening to his confused protest.

He quickly grabbed an oven mitt and covered his nose as he opened the oven to a small billow of smoke. Grabbing the tray of rolls-turned-charcoal, he set them on an open cooling rack on the counter, turned off the oven, and opened the closest window. He was able to fan a lot of the smoke out the window with the help of a hand towel, but the smell still lingered. Probably would for a while.

“So,” he sighed as he looked around the kitchen again and finally turned to face his neighbor who was still standing on the sidelines. “I don’t think we’ve actually met. I’m Sousuke. Yamazaki Sousuke.”

“Matsuoka Rin.”

“Well, Matsuoka,” Sousuke took a moment to peek into various pots and pans and just generally survey the damage done. “I don’t think your meal is completely beyond saving. I could probably salvage some of it if you want some help.”

Looking around at the mess he’d managed to make so far, Rin sighed, “That would actually be great.”

“Okay,” Sousuke said as he went to the sink to wash his hands. “Let’s start by finding out what we can fix and what we can’t. What were you trying to make?”

“Some of my mom’s recipes.” Rin moved to pick up several printed recipes off of his small breakfast table. “She always made cooking look easy, so I thought I could pull it off too. There’s a lot more time and space management involved than I planned.”

Sousuke grinned as he took the recipes from Rin so that he could try to figure out what was what, but then he caught sight of Rin’s hands again. “How’d you get those burns?”

Waving both hands vaguely at the various messes around them, Rin said, “I don’t know. They just sort of happened.”

“They’re shiny. Did you put something on them?”

“Butter.” When Sousuke immediately looked slightly horrified at his answer, Rin asked, “What? Isn’t that what you’re supposed to do?”

“ _No_ ,” Sousuke stressed. “Where did you hear that?”

“I don’t know!” Rin threw up his hands. “Somewhere? I know I’ve heard that somewhere before.”

“Then someone, somewhere, is trying to give you an infection,” Sousuke told him. “Do they still burn?”

Rin gave him a _duh_ look. “Well, yeah, they’re burns.”

“I’ll tell you what,” Sousuke started as he set aside the recipes and stepped closer to Rin. He untied his apron and started lifting it over his head as he said, “You give me this and I’ll handle the kitchen. You go clean the butter off your hands--gently--and keep the burns under cold water until the burning dies down. It’ll probably take a few minutes.”

There wasn’t much argument on Rin’s part as he did what Sousuke told him, and once he was on his way to the bathroom, Sousuke set to work. The rolls he’d pulled out of the oven were dumped in the trash, but Sousuke turned the oven back on and shut the door when he found another bag of frozen rolls in the freezer. Extra water was added to some pots, oil to others, and all of them were thoroughly picked over and stirred to remove any burned and scorched parts. A few taste tests, some seasoning adjustments, and a good wipe down of the counters later, and Rin’s kitchen was starting to look like a kitchen again. It still smelled a little off, but there was only so much that Sousuke could do for that.

Sousuke was just setting aside the last of the dishes he’d been washing to dry when Rin finally made his way back into the kitchen. He was in a clean set of clothes and tying his slightly damp hair back into a short ponytail. 

“I hope you don’t mind, but I went ahead and took a quick shower.” When Sousuke didn’t say anything, he felt a small tug of nervousness at his stomach. “When I got to the bathroom and actually looked at myself, well, I hadn’t realized I’d made that much of a mess. When I found...something, sauce maybe? I don’t know, but I found something in my hair and couldn’t just leave it there.”

Shaking his head and trying not to stare at Rin’s now clean face, Sousuke waved off his explanation. “It’s fine. I think I have most everything squared away now, anyway. How are your hands?”

Lifting his hands, covered in red splotches here and there, for inspection, Rin said, “Not too bad. Doesn’t hurt as bad anymore.” He walked over to the kitchen, noting that it was much cleaner than when he’d left it, and started looking at the revived dishes. “Holy shit,” he mumbled. “This looks a _lot_ better than what I was doing.”

“Cooking really isn’t that hard.”

“That’s only what people who can actually cook say.”

Sousuke smirked. “I could teach you sometime. At the very least, I can show you how to boil water without scorching the pot.”

“Yeah yeah, make your jokes,” Rin rolled his eyes. “Since you kind of saved me here, I guess I have it coming.”

“Really though,” Sousuke said a little more seriously. “ _Someone_ should show you how to at least cook for yourself.”

“I can cook for myself,” Rin defended. “Just not for a group of people.”

Sousuke outright laughed at that. “Sorry, but the frozen meals I found in the freezer don’t count. I mean actually making a meal for yourself from fresh ingredients.”

Settling in a seat at his breakfast table, Rin made a face at Sousuke’s broad back as he thought over his next words. “You wanna stay for dinner?” He finally offered.

Sousuke turned to look at him to see if he was serious and saw the way the tips of Rin’s ears were turning red. Looking back to the sauce he was stirring, he said, “This was supposed to be just you and your friends, right?”

“Yeah, well, considering you’re the one who made dinner edible, I don’t they’d mind you joining us.” When Sousuke didn’t answer, he continued, “You just live across the hall. Go freshen up, come back, and eat with us. They’ll be here soon.”

Tapping his spoon on the edge of the pot before setting it aside, Sousuke looked at Rin and asked, “You sure?”

“Yeah, definitely.”

“Okay then,” Sousuke agreed as he untied the apron he’d taken from Rin earlier. He draped it over the back of a nearby chair before unrolling his sleeves. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.” He was almost to the door when he stopped and looked back at where Rin was peeking in pots again. “Oh, and _don’t_ touch anything until I get back.”


End file.
